Turning
forty rocks a research technician's world. Her husband leaves her,
and then she's bitten by a mouse at work. She goes a littlecrazy,
taking off to chase after her old dream of a music career and her
newcrush: a rock band drummer.

Turning
forty, for Lannie Marvin, is rough. It's the day she discovers her
husband is leaving her for a younger "soulmate." At work, a
crazed mouse being treated with an experimental drug brutally bites
her. Then, Lannie goes a little crazy, too.

Seems
she's recently developed a serious crush on the drummer of her son's
favorite heavy metal band. Waking up to her husband's empty closet,
her finger still throbbing from the mouse bite, Lannie snaps. Under
the ruse of a shopping trip, Lannie kidnaps her sister-in-law/best
friend, and heads toward Bethel, New York - the site of the original
Woodstock concert.

Just
so happens Dreamwish is playing a concert there, and Lannie managed
to procure the pair of tickets her son won but couldn't use.

Tristan
Allard, the band's drummer, holds this benefit every year in memory
of his wife, whom he lost to breast cancer. The musician is beginning
to doubt his ability to write the band's music without his wife's
inspiration - she was also his muse. Plus, he's damn lonely. So when
a sexually charged, extremely attractive, slightly older woman
literally plows into him at the backstage reception, Tristan is ready
to learn more about her - and her long-buried interest in musical
composition.

The
two head off for a wild ride of a weekend, but reality bites back.
Tristan is headed to the UK to audition his next album's scores. And
an elevated libido isn't the only side-effect of that experimental
drug.

I
don’t quite know how to describe the concert. I can say it was as
stimulating visually as it was to my ears. The band—four guys and a
girl—all had hair longer than mine, which was well past my
shoulders. All except for the keyboardist, whose head was shaved,
although he sported a long, red beard parted into two straggly
plaits. I wondered how he kept them from tangling with the keys. The
girl who sang vocals had inky hair hanging in strings to her
shoulders, and she wore a black leather bustier that laced up the
front. Well, almost laced. In truth, the garment left little to the
imagination.

But
then there was the drummer. If not for the overhead monitors panning
in for close-ups during the performance, I might never have known he
existed. What a travesty that would have been.

In a
word, he was . . . magnificent. He sat like a king on his throne at
the elevated rear of the stage, sparkling silver-flake drums
surrounding him like loyal minions. The monitor directly over our
seats focused on him often, so close and so clear I could see the
sweat glistening on sculpted upper arms, bare beneath a black muscle
shirt stretched taut across a broad chest. Some sort of ink crawled
over one bicep. A black-and-white paisley bandanna covered most of
his head, but long, dark curls framed his face and clung damp against
his neck. His facial hair, limited to a sparse mustache and goatee,
was chocolate brown. I indulged in the fantasy that his eyes were
that same sweet, smoldering color.

His
passion for his work was palpable. Hands flying, head bobbing, he was
completely engrossed, as if the music were a drug he was tripping on.
His hooded eyes gave him the look of a sleepy lover, but when he did
open them, I could swear he was gazing directly at me.

Looking
back on that night, I can’t be sure how long we’d sat there
before I fixated on my drummer boy. The music, which at first grated
on my senses as way too loud and completely discordant, gradually
began to permeate my brain. Before long, my bare toes started tapping
against the carpeted floor. I freed one hand from my cup of wine to
pat my thigh in time with the music. When my head began to bob,
almost of its own accord, I smiled.

Ah,
now I know why they call progressive metal fans head
bangers.

The
next hour and a half went by so quickly I might have slipped into a
time warp. At one point I wondered if my cup of nine-dollar wine was
laced with something mind-altering and illegal. I began to dig the
music. I was actually enjoying the concert.

But
before I’d seen nearly enough of my chocolate king behind the
drums, the stage went black and the lighting came up. The band did
not return for an encore. My first heavy progressive experience had
come to an end.

I
blinked in the sudden brightness, dazed for a moment, like I’d
woken from a dream. Jeri was struggling with the strap of her shoe,
her other hand braced against her forehead as though she had a
massive headache. Grommet guy, too impatient to wait for the two
elders beside him to vacate the aisle, vaulted easily over the backs
of the seats into the row in front of us and disappeared into the
crowd.

I’d
almost forgotten my own young progeny—a son and a nephew—were in
the same building.

We
reunited on the sidewalk fifteen minutes later. The rain had ceased,
leaving the city gleaming under the streetlights, clean and brand
new.

Somehow,
I felt that way too. Clean and brand new.

We
were climbing into my brother’s SUV, Paul at the wheel with Jeri
and Jay next to him in the front. I sat squashed between my husband
and son in the back. Jeri’s head immediately dropped to Paul’s
shoulder. I knew she’d be asleep before we got onto the West Side
Highway.

I so
wanted to do the same, and cuddle against my husband. But he’d said
barely a meaningful word to me all evening. I sighed, dropped my head
back against the seat, and closed my eyes.

“So,
what did you guys do for all that time?” Ryan asked.

“We
saw Dreamwish,” Paul piped up from the front, sounding as though
his statement actually made sense.

“You
saw our concert? You guys?” Jay sputtered through his laughter.

I
opened my eyes to find my son staring at me in much the same way Jeri
had been earlier.

“How’d
you like it, Mom?” Ryan asked in a slight singsong of ridicule,
which I chose to ignore.

I
caught my brother watching me in the rearview mirror. He was wearing
an impish grin. “For a while there,” he said, “we were afraid
your mother might run off with one of the roadies.”

The
next words popped out of my mouth before my brain had a chance to
stop them.

“To
hell with the roadies. If I run off, it will definitely be with the
yummy drummer.”

Shocked
silence extinguished all laughter, and I peeked up to see four pairs
of owlish eyes fixed on me.

“Go
to sleep,” Karl snarled under his breath. “You’ve had too much
to drink.”

Claire writes intensely emotional romantic novels. Her vision is to transport her readers into another place and time, creating characters so real, readers miss them when they reach The End. Her heroes are hot, & her heroines strong and brave: a combination producing the spark to fan the flames of your most intense romantic fantasies. Claire's characters are human, just like you & me. They make mistakes, they get clumsy sometimes, & they're not too proud to laugh at themselves & each other.

The keyword here is EMOTION. Big on the *Sigh* factor, Claire's stories aim to hit you straight in the heart and leave you smiling through happy tears.

She writes in two genres: romance w/a ghostly twist, and sexy contemporary. Claire's books are like a thrill ride at a theme park. Whether it's spooky-scary, angst-ridden relationships filled with gut-wrenching turmoil, silly chuckle moments, or hot-flash-inducing sex, Claire guarantees to take you on an emotionally intense romantic journey.

Finally, we can not forget our taste buds! What is scientific butter, you may ask? It’s butter that you make while learning about science! Your young explorers are sure to enjoy this fun and gooey experiment. The question is- will you eat it?

Be sure to read the bottom of the blog posts - Little Passports has something brewing in the laboratory!

Tour runs from Sept 26th- Oct 31st!

A
contemporary romantic mystery, Dangerous Waters is the first of The
Guernsey Novels

Tragedy
seems to follow Jeanne Le Page around . . .

Can
she really go through it again and survive?

Jeanne
is lucky to be alive … at sixteen she was almost killed in a
boating accident which brought heart-breaking family tragedy. Now,
fifteen years later, Jeanne returns reluctantly to the island of
Guernsey following the death of her beloved grandmother. Struggling
for breath as the ferry nears the island, she is overwhelmed by a
dark foreboding as hazy memories of that terrible day resurface…

Only
returning to sell her inheritance - her grandmother’s old cottage -
she has no intention of picking up her old life. But the cottage
holds a secret, dating back to World War II, and Jeanne becomes drawn
into discovering more. Then, soon after her arrival, a chance meeting
with an old teenage crush leads her to thoughts of love.

Jeanne
is forced to face her demons, reliving the tragedy as her lost memory
returns.

When
the truth is finally revealed, her life is endangered for the second
time…

Finding Mother: A Family DramaThe Guernsey Novels - Book 2

Prepare
to be swept away by a heart-warming tale of family relationships and
love

Three
women. Three generations. Sacrifices for love…

Who
is she really? Nicole is about to find out as she searches for her
real mother; the woman who gave her away at birth. With her marriage
in tatters, she sets out from England: travelling to Spain, Jersey
and Guernsey before the extraordinary story of her real family is
finally revealed.

Nicole
becomes an unwitting catalyst for change in the family. Two women are
forced to reveal long-buried secrets. One going back as far as the
Second World War. Lives are transformed as choices have to be made
and the past laid to rest…

This
contemporary romantic drama is the second of The Guernsey Novels, a
series of stand-alone books by the award-winning author Anne Allen.
It is likely to appeal to lovers of the works of Joanna Trollope and
Maeve Binchy.

The
latest page-turner offering mystery and romance from the
Award-Winning Author of Dangerous Waters

Two
violent deaths. Separated by time, but with a fatal connection…

A
man loses his father. A young woman loses her mother. Both in tragic
circumstances that lead, when they meet, to surprising revelations
from the past.

Louisa
needs to find the father she has never known, to warn him of possible
danger - for them both. Her search takes her from England to
Guernsey. Malcolm's journey is more tortuous: conceived in Guernsey,
he travels to Canada as a baby with his bereaved mother. Many years
later he arrives in India, and from here he is led back to Guernsey
to open a health centre at La Folie. This was his father's home,
where Malcolm was conceived, but never lived and where his father was
killed at the start of the Second World War.

At
the heart of the two deaths lie stolen jewels. Valuable enough to
kill for. Twice.

Finding
her father brings Louisa more than she bargains for, and her life is
transformed, while Malcolm learns that life is, after all, for
sharing…

Andy
Batiste, at loggerheads with his degenerate cousin, seeks to discover
the truth of his family history. Why was his pregnant grandmother
forced to flee to France? What really happened to her husband during
the German Occupation, sixty years ago? Who accused Edmund, the elder
son and Batiste heir, of being an informer? Was he really a traitor –
and who murdered him?

With
Edmund’s brother Harold now head of the family, enjoying the wealth
which ought to have come to Andy’s father, the family is forever
divided. Andy yearns to clear Edmund’s name and restore his father
to his rightful inheritance.

Into
the conflict comes Charlotte Townsend, newly divorced, lonely and
struggling with writer’s block and the consuming threat of
impending loss. She returns for healing at Guernsey's natural health
centre, La Folie, and becomes involved in Andy’s family affairs.

2010. Natalie Ogier returns to Guernsey to escape an abusive relationship – only to be plagued by odd happenings in her beautiful cottage on the site of a derelict and secluded farm. Disturbing dreams, disembodied voices and uncanny visions from the past. She becomes increasingly ill at ease as someone else’s past catches up with her own…

Her only immediate neighbour, Stuart, is the grandson of the original owners, Bill and Olive.

Thrown together in a bid to find out what really happened to Olive, can they each survive the repercussions of the past and move on?

Anne
was born in Rugby to a Welsh father and an English mother. As a
result she spent many summers with her Welsh grandparents in Anglesey
and learnt to love the sea. Now she is based in Devon to be near her
daughter and 2 small grandchildren. Her restless spirit has meant a
number of moves, the longest stay being in Guernsey for nearly
fourteen years after falling in love with the island and the people.
She contrived to leave one son behind to ensure a valid reason for
frequent returns. Her younger son is based in London - ideal for city
breaks ☺

By
profession Anne is a psychotherapist who long had a desire to write
and Dangerous Waters,her first novel,was published in 2012. It was
awarded Silver(Adult Fiction) in TheWishingShelfAwards 2012. Her
second,Finding Mother, was runner-up in Family Sagas in the 2013
SpaSpa Awards. The third in The Guernsey Novels series, Guernsey
Retreat, was published in 2014 and a fifth, The Family Divided, will
be out in June 2015.

Zenith

The
Interscission Project #1

By
Arshad Ahsanuddin

Genre:
Sci-fi, Adventure, Romance, M/M

Grounded
after a rescue attempt in Earth orbit goes bad, Commander Martin
Atkins of the Confederation Navy is approached by the Interscission
Project, a consortium of civilian corporations on the verge of
perfecting the technology to travel to another star. Despite his
misgivings, the chance to get back in the pilot’s seat is too much
to pass up, and he convinces his best friend and crewmate, Charles
Davenport, to leave the military temporarily and join him as part of
the crew of the Zenith, humanity’s first starship.Edward
Harlen is a brilliant young engineer, and a key player in the
construction of the Zenith to take advantage of the untested
technology of foldspace drive. But Edward has his own agenda in
joining the project, and a bitterly personal score to settle with his
boss, Trevor Sutton, a vendetta of which Trevor is entirely ignorant.
When Edward’s sister Stella enters the picture and manages to
secure a position on the project, all of Edward’s careful plotting
is upset, and she might spell the downfall not only of his plans for
revenge, but of the entire Zenith mission.The
spark of attraction between Edward and Martin is a complication that
Edward can’t afford, but of which he can’t let go. For Edward
knows the secret at the heart of the Interscission Project, the
hidden potential of the technology that in the wrong hands could
become the ultimate assassin’s weapon: the ability to rewrite
history, not just once, but many times. As an unseen enemy moves to
destroy them, and the body count multiplies in their wake, Martin and
Edward must choose whether they will allow the possibility of love to
challenge their destinies, or will they instead take up arms in a war
to control the most ancient and terrible power in the universe.

Edward
has one chance to save a man he forgot he ever loved.All he has
to do is destroy the world.The
disastrous events of the Zenith mission behind them, Marty and Edward
lead very different lives at either end of time. Martin
has been tapped to lead an elite military operation designed to
curtail and ultimately eliminate the threat of time travelers. But
Henry Bradford has other ideas, and seeks to entice him into taking
up the role of captain of the rechristened starship Azimuth.
Almost
a quarter century in the future, Edward lives a life of wealth and
influence as the adopted son of Starfire’s CEO, Trevor Sutton. But
the mystery of his birth father’s murder still weighs heavily on
his mind, eclipsed only by the baffling appearance of Martin’s
dogtags around his neck. The distance he will go for answers will
determine the ultimate course of human history, as he is pitted head
to head once more against the destructive agenda of the time traveler
he knows only as Gifford.

Life
settles into a routine for the inhabitants of Chiron Colony,
humanity’s first interstellar settlement, after the threat of the
time traveler Gifford has apparently been eliminated. But the
Hourglass and its leader, Admiral O’Dare, are not content to rest
on their laurels, convinced that time travel remains a palpable
threat to human civilization. When Annette Sutton uncover a possible
secret plot to eliminate the principal members of the Interscission
Project decades in the past, when they had only just met, the
colonists' idyllic peace is shattered.Can
Martin and his people head off disaster as the Admiral moves to
destroy the potential for time travel, once and for all? Or is there
a deeper agenda in play? As loyalty and duty become pawns in the race
to prevent the erasure of all that they have accomplished, Martin
will have to decide once and for all how far he will go to save
everything and everyone he loves.

By
profession, I am a hematopathologist, a laboratory physician who
specializes in diagnosis of diseases of blood, bone marrow, and lymph
nodes, such as leukemia and lymphoma. Yes, I realize the irony that I
write about vampires. ;) The
Pact Arcanum Saga consists of five books: Sunset, Cathedral of the
Sky, Sunrise, Moonlight, and Starlight. It is best described as
non-explicit, gay vampire space opera. The Interscission Project is
gay space opera/time travel, and consists of four books: Zenith,
Azimuth, Insurrection, and Ascension (forthcoming). Note:While
each series conforms to standard conventions regarding the romance
genre overall, I do not guarantee a happy ending to any individual
book within the series.Visit
my website: PactArcanum.com for more information.

Joker’s Trick or Treatby: Audra Hart

As All Hallows Eve approaches, the veil between realms wavers, tempting many magickal beings to seek dominion over mortals. However, there are those who watch over mankind. The Twin Ravens Outlaw MC are one such group of protectors. Joker, a former slave turned blood wolf, a guardian who relives the pain and heartache of losing Jenniene, the only woman he ever loved, every year as All Hallows approaches. Until the night when the lover he long believed dead walks through the door of the MC with enemies in tow. Will the return of the mysterious Jenniene be Joker’s Trick, or Treat?
Read An Excerpt

♥♥♥

The Wolf’s Ghostby: Bethany Shaw

Jace has spent his long, werewolf life searching for his true mate. He never expected to run into her while on the run from a malicious pack. Now all he has to do is keep her safe, evade the bloodthirsty wolves, and convince her that they are fated mates.
Trapped inside her home for decades, Eva is determined to set herself free of her prison this All Hallows Eve. That is, until a wolf crashes into her library through the window. Eva feels compelled to help the handsome stranger, especially when she learns they share a common enemy, but will helping him cost her the one time a year she has to break the spell?
Read An Excerpt

♥♥♥

The Haunted Mateby: Bryce Evans

With her world blowing up around her, Bloom Scott is feeling lost. She has no job, family, or future…until a strange letter arrives from a place called Mystery. Could she really be the beneficiary of a will from a grandmother she’s never known?
Freeman Butler has no desire to share his family's legacy with a woman he's never met; much less a human who doesn't know anything about shifters. Surviving a year without giving in to his desire for the sweet smelling Bloom, will be anything but easy, but he’s determined to keep what’s his.
Surrounded by strange people, who believe in strange things, and spirits that seem to have it in for her, Bloom might just lose her mind before the year is up.
Read An Excerpt

♥♥♥

Hallowed Destiny-Forged by Darknessby: Candace Blevins

A year ago, Destiny was abducted by sick demon worshipers who intended to use her as a human sacrifice. They’d already carved evil-looking symbols all over her body when she somehow managed to escape.
Tonight is Halloween — the one-year anniversary of her abduction — and she’s determined to return to the woods where she nearly lost her life. She doesn’t expect to see a white lion waiting for her. Aren’t black cats supposed to be bad luck? Perhaps a white lion will be the opposite of evil. Or, maybe she’s finally lost her mind, because lions are not indigenous to Georgia.
Read An Excerpt

♥♥♥

Dark Loversby: Elle Boon

Raina wanted what every female did…
The only daughter of the vampire king, and a shifter, Raina had everything she could ever want, except the HeartsLove she craved. When Satan kidnaps her to be his consort she comes face-to-face with the possibility of never finding it.
Creed was equal parts good and bad…The son of Satan and an angel, he lives a life filled with death and battle, excelling at each. Until he found his Chosen in his father’s chamber.
What would you do to save those you love? Creed will give up his soul in order to save Raina. She realizes he’s her other half and can’t live without him. Will they both be willing to sacrifice for the other?
Read An Excerpt

♥♥♥

Tears for Her Dragonby: Julia Mills

Escaped from hell on earth, lost and alone, a wail in the night calls to not only his beast but also his heart. Finding this tortured woman is all that matters.
On the run, hiding in plain sight, the icy fingers of doom invade her soul. The pull of the world she fled tears at the fiber of her being.
Lovers from different worlds, fighting a common enemy, thrown together by the Reaper himself, helpless but to do as he bids.
Can these two souls find peace when the Devil himself is demanding his due?
Read An Excerpt

♥♥♥

Once Upon a Hallows Eveby: KD Jones

Halloween is the busiest time of year for Rita Russell and her little shop. Then Luke Conrad shows up and thwarts her happiness. She’s refuses to let him ruin everything she worked for.
Luke Conrad is the alpha of the local werewolf pack and has to track a murderer while keeping their secret safe from the humans. Standing in his way is a curvy spitfire shop owner who his wolf wants to claim, and she happens to be his number one suspect.
Nothing will ever be the same for these two when the pack runs . . . once upon a Hallow’s Eve.
Read An Excerpt

♥♥♥

Haunted by Loveby: Lori King

It was the dare to end all dares, and she didn’t have the option of backing down. Spend Halloween night in the haunted castle in the forest. She figured it would be easy enough; after all, she didn’t believe in ghosts.
A hundred years trapped in an inescapable hell had twisted his heart into a black rock of despair and loathing for everything human. Many had tested his limits over the centuries, but none had reached into his soul the way she did.
To overcome, he was to reach her, but she doesn’t believe. Will they both spend the rest of eternity haunted by love?
Read An Excerpt

♥♥♥

The Valley of Shadowsby: Melissa Bell

Steeped in centuries of tradition and in accordance with the Laws of Lupine. When the daughter of an Alpha comes of age, she stands before her pack as the prized female. Held in the Valley of Shadows, on All Hallows Eve is a twisted game of survival. Only the eldest unmated son of the Alpha’s may compete for if they fail it means they are dead. It is part of an ancient ceremony one that will bring packs together from far and wide. It’s an honor to be chosen to run the gauntlet, and a disgrace not to accept.
Read An Excerpt

♥♥♥

Hunter’s Markby: Melissa Snark

ER nurse Victoria Storm anticipates a joyous Winter Nights ceremony with her wolf-shifter pack, but a determined hunter upsets all her plans. Daniel Barrett wants her help because he suspects a ghost is behind his friend’s disappearance. As a pagan priestess and spirit-speaker, she can discover things he can’t. He’s as sexy as he is persistent--she finds him impossible to refuse. Throw in a trip to a remote Arizona town, a haunted hotel, and a lost gold mine, and their evening is about to get interesting.
Read An Excerpt

♥♥♥

The Tiger’s Bride by: R.e. Butler

As the last golden-furred tiger shifter in existence, Charisma knows that the only opportunity he has to find his soulmate is to wait for the All Hallows Eve full moon. With an enchanted medallion in hand, Charisma casts the spell for his soulmate, hoping that the necklace will find the one woman meant to be his. Unless he finds his other half, his beast will slowly take over and he’ll go feral. What he doesn’t expect is interference from the very Wiccan who helped him, and for his soulmate’s life to be on the line.
Read An Excerpt

♥♥♥

Mate Huntby: Sydney Lea

When Eva finally returned home she had three goals. Find a place of her own, get settled into her new job...and avoid Jackson Hollinger at all costs. Little did she know that the man in question had very different plans for her.
However, when a rogue wolf kidnaps the alpha’s new mate and sends a human hunting party in Eva’s direction on the eve of her first shift, it’s up to Jackson to make sure he finds her first. Will Jackson get there in time?
It’s Halloween, and it’s time for a mate hunt.
Read An Excerpt

Highly praised classic fairy tale, Wishapick Tickety Boo and the Black Trunk, a children’s book for all ages, written by acclaimed author MM Allen; and a CD of Wishapick Tickety Boo and the Black Trunk soundtrack composed by the talented Deborah Wynne.

Darkness-utter blackness. Was this why his mother had refused to let Jack unlock his father’s old trunk? It had been two years since his dad had died, and all Jack could think about was examining whatever treasures were stored inside the beloved trunk. But when he finally lifted the lid, he didn’t just fall in –he fell through it into a pit of rattlesnakes. Trying to recall his mother’s stories about the Breathe of All Good Things –anything to help him out of his dangerous predicament-Jack wished he had paid attention rather than mock the tales as childish myths… and that he’d waited to enter the trunk with his sister, Lilly. They could have at least faced this together. Jack quickly learns two things; the villagers in Wishapick think Jack is the only one who can bring light back to Wishapick –and accomplishing this feat is the only way he can return home.

M. M. Allen, author of the acclaimed children’s picture book Let’s Play Ball, is the mother of two adult children and aunt to twenty-three nieces and nephews, including ten great-nieces and great-nephews. MM is a former teacher and university lecturer. She has also worked extensively in marketing and communications with varied businesses and non-profits. MM lives in a picturesque northern California town where she enjoys writing, tending to her rose garden, and caring for her West Highland terrier, Pip.

About Deborah Wynne

Composer and lyricist Deborah Wynne created a companion CD of songs to accompany Wishapick: Tickety Boo and the Black Trunk. Wynne’s primary talents lie in choral singing, stage musicals, and composing. Her musical projects include the 2013 album Strands of Gold and 2007 musical Moment of Truth. She is an active singer and composer in Santa Barbara, California, where she lives with her husband and their two shelties, Sparkle and Gracie.

Learn More About Wishapick

Wishapick Soundtrack Be sure to check out the companion music CD, Wishapick, for purchase or download from DeborahWynne.com